Overview
- Berlin confirmed the chancellor will make his inaugural trip to Israel before the end of the year, with the exact date to be announced closer to departure.
- Israeli media report a 6–7 December itinerary including a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a visit to Yad Vashem, though Germany has not confirmed the agenda.
- Germany has ended a three-and-a-half-month restriction on arms exports to Israel and returned to case-by-case licensing, a step welcomed by the Israeli government.
- The visit was delayed seven months after Merz took office due largely to the Gaza war, with a ceasefire now in place for about six weeks.
- On a state visit to Hamburg, Merz pledged federal support for renewing the Elbe bridges, advancing the A26-Ost section, and modernizing the city’s rail hub, as local leaders protested separate €1.35 billion funding earmarked for military port infrastructure in Bremerhaven.